Introduction 1. The Institute on Statelessness and Inclusion (ISI), 1 the European Network on Statelessness (ENS)2 and the Hungarian Helsinki Committee (HHC)3 welcome the opportunity to make this submission to the Committee on the Rights of the Child regarding Hungary’s compliance with Article 7 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (the Convention), which enshrines every child’s right to acquire a nationality. 2. Despite a positive ratification record of relevant international treaties and some existing safeguards in domestic legislation, Hungarian law and practice fail to respect, protect and fulfil every child’s right to acquire a nationality, while also failing to uphold related obligations of non-discrimination and the best interests of the child. Consequently, children continue to be denied the right to acquire a nationality in Hungary, even where this results in their statelessness, or subjects them to years or even decades of their childhood with an undetermined or unknown nationality, as well as discrimination based on nationality status between children in a comparable situation. 3. The co-submitting organisations believe that this unnecessary strain inflicted on children, as a result of the denial of their right to acquire a nationality and related violations of Convention rights, can be addressed through law and policy reform, as set out in this submission. 4. This submission highlights challenges in the realisation of the right of every child to acquire a nationality and the avoidance of childhood statelessness in Hungary as a result of requirements to determine nationality at birth, and gaps in legal safeguards to prevent statelessness where children are born on the territory who would otherwise be stateless. In light of Hungary’s obligations under the Convention, State recommendations issued to Hungary during the first Cycle of the Universal Periodic Review4, and the importance of the eradication of statelessness as expressed by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees #IBelong campaign,5 the submitting organisations hope the Committee will raise the issue of realising the right of every child to acquire a nationality in its Constructive Dialogue with Hungary and address recommendations to the Government of Hungary to further prevent and reduce the problem of childhood statelessness in the country. 5. Through this thematic submission, which draws on ISI’s, ENS’s and the HHC’s expertise and research in this area,6 we provide: a. comments on Hungary’s Sixth Periodic Report to the Committee, submitted on 15 July 2019,7 in which Hungary responded to the List of Issues Prior to Reporting (LOIPTR) issued by the Committee on 29 November 2018;8 and b. recommended questions to be addressed to Hungary during the Constructive Dialogue, which will be held at the 84th Pre-Session of the Committee. 1 See further: http://www.institutesi.org/ourwork/children.php. further www.statelessness.eu. 3 See further: www.helsinki.hu/en 4 In July 2011, Ecuador recommended that Hungary “Recognize and guarantee the human rights of all foreigners, independent and regardless of their migratory status” A/HRC/18/17, 11 July 2011, Para 95.28. Hungary rejected this recommendation but accepted recommendations relevant to the human rights of stateless persons from Poland, Islamic Republic of Iran, Argentina, Chile, Morocco and Belarus). 5 The UNHCR #IBelong campaign aims to eradicate statelessness by the year 2024, see further: http://www.unhcr.org/ibelong/. 6 See #StatelessnessIndex Hungary country profile: https://index.statelessness.eu/country/hungary; Hungarian Helsinki Committee (2014) Nationality Unknown? An overview of the safeguards and gaps related to the prevention of statelessness at birth in Hungary): https://www.refworld.org/docid/5310640b4.html; ENS (2015), No Child Should be Stateless: https://www.statelessness.eu/sites/www.statelessness.eu/files/ENS_NoChildStateless_final.pdf 7 CRC/C/HUN/6 8 CRC/C/HUN/QPR/6 2See 2